Wortham calls for improvements to 'terrible BT broadband'

Residents of the village of Wortham in Suffolk have urged BT to improve what they describe as "terrible" broadband.

According to the Diss Express, a clerk from the parish council has written to the chairman of the firm in an effort to encourage it to offer a better service in the area.

Netty Verkroost, clerk to Wortham and Burgate Parish Council, has contacted Sir Michael Rake citing the results of a local survey of 575 parishioners, the results of which indicated that the respondents believed BT's broadband was the worst thing about living in the area.

The letter states that the service creates "unequal opportunity of internet access" for business and domestic users affected by the poor service, which puts these customers at a disadvantage compared to neighbours and competing firms.

“The consequent potential financial, social and educational implications should be taken very seriously. We urge you to enhance your efforts to provide better broadband service to our parish," it added.

Stephen Rash, chairman of Wortham and Burgate Parish Council, believes the current offering from BT is archaic, describing it as "super-slow broadband". He said that the service has never been up to scratch and the situation is worsening as more people and businesses need to use the internet.

“We felt this needed to be pointed out. We had a recent parish survey and it came up as something that frustrates residents quite highly," he continued.

The chairman added that the service can often drop off or become frustratingly slow as websites become more sophisticated, forgetting about those who have "terribly slow broadband".

The Better Broadband for Suffolk scheme - a partnership between the council, BT and the government - was launched 16 months ago with the aims of creating a network that was "fit for the 21st century."

According to Suffolk County Council, all premises in the area will have speeds of at least two Mbps by the end of 2015, with 90 per cent able access broadband by fibre and 85 per cent enjoying speeds of over 24 Mbps.

A spokesperson from the council said residents would need to upgrade their broadband packages to benefit from improved speeds once fibre optic has been installed.